Raspberry Pi 5

 

It's no secret that I'm a big fan of Raspberry Pi single board computers.  They are not the only SBC available - there are now many - but they are still the most versatile and popular by a country mile.

The current latest edition - the 4B model - has only been on the market since 2019, but already, a new, model 5, is on the way.

The question is: will you want to upgrade?  Well, if you're operating portable in any fashion, the answer is almost certainly going to be 'no'.  

 

I wrote at the time I got my first Pi 4B that I thought it was not much of a performance improvement for things like WSJT-X and JTDX.  The Pi 3B is perfectly adequate for that function, and has good power consumption figures - a critical aspect of all portable working.

The Pi 4B is almost required for things like SDR software with things like SDRplay units and the like.  The signal processing load is quite high, and audio stuttering can happen on the 3B, unless the sampling rate is reduced dramatically.  It will work, and work well, but the 4B handles it much easier.

The 4B does use somewhat more power, but it's never proven to be any issue at all in my extensive experience - now daily - of working /P.

The Pi 5 will likely use more power again, given it is rumoured to have a 2GHz processor.  Fine for home use, not so great for portable - though we will have to wait for a real Pi 5 to see if this will be an issue in practice.

The expected use of full-sized HDMI ports, if realised, would be a good thing; the micro-HDMI sockets used in the 4B are too small and prone to damage.  The 16GB memory option will also be a big increase in capability, although the price for that version may well make it less popular.

No mention of USB connections for peripherals.  For radio use, you need at least three, and often all four of the sockets on the 4B.  Dropping these would be a real mistake, so it's fingers crossed on that one!  Then again, production of older Pi units continues for a long time - the Model A, released in 2013 - and all subsequent models are still in production.  So it's not like Microsoft or Apple forcing you to buy only the very latest models.

In the meantime, here's the latest gossip on the Pi 5.